Headlight.



R, o; MGQLAY.

' Patented Aug. 24. 1909 NLD 1 J ,WM w

2 L. M1/AT j UNITED STAlEPATENT onirica.

ROYAL C. HCCLAY, OF LOS ANGELE, CALIFORNIA, ASSIGNOR, BY DIRECT ANDMESNE ASSIGN- IENTS, T0 MECHANICAL ELECTRICAL APPLIANCES COMPANY,INCORPORATED, OF

CARSON CITY, NEVADA.

HEADLIGHT.

Specicationof Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 24., 1909.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROYAL C. MCCLAY, of the city of Los Angeles, in thecounty of 'Los Angeles and State of California, have 'invented new anduseful Improvements in Headlights, of which the following is a full,clear, and exact specification, reference being had to the annexeddrawings and to the letters and figures marked thereon.

My said invention which relates to certain new and useful improvementsin head lights, (sometimes known as head lamps) for vehicles such asautomobiles, has for its object. to secure additional safety to vehiclestraveling, or being propelled in dark roads .or streets, that is to say,after daylight, as well as to insure additional safety Ato personscontained in automobiles or'other vehicles traveling in either directionupon a roadway or street, while one of the results of the use of my saidinvention is to illuminate the region immediately at the side of the.Aautomobile whenever such automobile in the dark may be turned in a rightor left hand direction thereby enabling the driver of the automobile tosee if there be any obstruction in that region to impede the progress ofthe automobile.

My said invention may be used in'connec.- tion with a single head lightplaced in the center of the front of an automobile; or with two headlights placed one at each side of .the front of an automobile.

My invention consists in applying to the usual casing of a head light or lamp, or of both headlights or lamps, as the case may be, a sidecasing or casings at the inner end of the interior part of which apivoted shutter and reflector is carried. When the automobile istraveling straight ahead,then the reflector hehind the source of lightin the lamp throws a beam of light directly horizontal so as toilluminate the roadway or.

street straight ahead as hitherto, but when the driver or chaueur of anautomobile directs by means of' the steering gear the automobile totravel either in a right or left hand direction, then the shutter andreflector, either the right or left hand shutter and reflector as thecase may be, is opened by means of a lever operated by the rodconnecting the stub axle levers of the front wheels of the automobile.

operating the shutters from the steering gear by means of thisconnecting rod 1s hereinafter more fully described.

When either the right or left hand shutter and reflector is opened bythe driver or chauffeur steering the automobile either to the right orleft, then part of the light which until the shutter is .opened hadpassed directly out through the front glassl of the lamp falls upon thereflecting surface of the s-hutter and is by that reflecting surfacedirected vas a beam of light thrown out laterally through thetransparent glass front of the chamber whereof the reflector has beenopened, and this side light not only illuminates the region into whichthe automobile is being steered, but a portion of the glass forming theouter inclined side of the cham-v ber is also in part obscured so thatthe light passing through the obscured part of the glass being therebydiffused is seen by a person either in an automobile or other vehicle,or walking, whereby that person is shown and observes the direction inwhich Fig. l, is a. front elevation of the head light corresponding toFigs. l, 2, and 3. Fig. 5, is a plan of part of the front running gearof an automobile showing` the knuckles and their connections whereby theshutters and reflectors of thc read light are operated, also showingpart of the steering gear. Fig. G, is a plan of a lefthand head light incases where two head lights are used. Fig. 7, is a plan of arightband-head light in cases where two head lights are used. Fig. 8, isa plan oi part of' the running gear illustrating the means for operatingthe shutters and reflectors in both head lights as hereinafter morefully described. Fig. 9, is an enlarged View showing one ofthe sidechambers of the head light. thc shutter 'and refiector piv- -otedthereto, and the means for connecting the pivots of' the shutter andreflector to the The manner of 1 steering gear.

In Figs. l, 2, 3, and t, illustrating a single headlight for the centerof the front of an automobile, the main casing A, thereof is preferablycylindrical asshown by these figures. At each side of the casing A, isan opening B, to admit of the fastening thereinto of two oppositerectangular casings C, and'D, respectively. The outer faces Vof thecasings C, and D, are inclined at,an angle as shown in the drawings, soas to allow the glass E, in each casing to transmit laterally,

. some of the light reflected from the rear mirror F, when either of thereflectors G, or H, is moved inwardly upon its aXis I, or J, into theposition shown by dotted lines in Fig. 2, so that' the light reflectedlaterally outward from one of the reflectors G, or H, as the case maybe, is projected through either of the glasses E, according to which theshutters and reflectors G, or H, is opened,

- and the region outside thel reflector is thereand enabling 1t to beseen ata greater dis-A tance than' the light passing through the clearunobscured central portion N. The glasses may be colored as either rubyred, orI green, by casing their exterior with either of those colors inthe manner so well known, and so long practiced in glass works, forcoating the exterior surfaces of white glass with a thin casing of rubyor green glass.

lThe head light is provided with the usual Ventilating cap l, for theallowance of the escape of the products of combustion of the light Q,within the head light. This light is of any character such as iscommonly used in headV lights, but an acetylene burner is preferred. Theacetylene heilig admitted to the burner Q1, by means ot' a pipeconnected to the cock or tap ll, whereby it passes up the tube S, to theburner Q1, as shown at Figs. 1, and 2. l

ltlach of the levers l, and L, is jointed at about the position markedc, in Fig. 5, but more especially shown in the larger view Fig. l. lThis joint is pivoted, and the pivot moves in a horizontalslot d, at oneend of the levers; the object ot' this. joint being to enable the motionof the parts ot an automobile in traveling to falte place -withoutputting any undue-strain on the operative parts of my newor improvedhead light.

The inner part of each of they levers K, and L, is formed with aneye-piece T, through which the rod M, passes, and upon the rod M. and atthe outer side of each of the eyepieces T, there is fastened by a setscrew, or otherwise, a collar U. One or the other of the collars U, whenthe rod M, is moved laterally. in either direction by the steering gear,presses againstl the eye-piece T, of one or the other of the levers K,and L, and in pressing upon either of the eye-pieces T, one of thecollars, according to the direction in which the rod M, is moved, turnseither of the reflecting shut-ters G, or H, so as to open the head lightand allow the light to be relected through the correspondlng glass E,laterally and horizontally. lVhen 1t is desired to discontinue 'thetraveling of an automobile in the curved direction hereinbefore referredto, then-the steering gear operates the rod M, in the opposite directionand closes either vone or the other of the reflecting shutters G, or H,and in closing either of the shutters G,or H, against thepinn'er edge ofeither of the casings C, 0r D, the light is thereby instantly stoppedfrom projecting..-

laterally `and horizontally through either of the glasses E, so thatwhen both reflecting shutters G, and H, are closed as shown in fulllines in Fig. 2, the light of the head light again is thrown straightahead.

In Fig. 5, the portion of the steering gear for operating the connectingrod M, is shown, and it consists otl the steering post M1, on the vlowerend of which the toothed pinion M2, is carried. This pinion M2, gearsinto the rack M?, pivotally connected by the rod M, to the steering armM, so that as the driver or chauffeur rotates the steering post M1, tothe right or lett, he thereby moves the toothed rack M3, correspondingly.to the right or left, thereby causing the parallel moving rod M, to bemoved to the right or left and to operate the reflecting shutters (l, orH upon their respective pivots in the manner hereinbefore described, andshown upon the drawings. The pinion M, and the toothed rack M, arecarried within the guide sheath N in the ordinary manner, and this beingwell known and understood need not be herein further described.

With the object of insuring that the refleeting shutters G, or ll, willclose completely after having been opened. reference is now made to Fig.t), ot' the drawings, which figure is drawn upon a larger scale than theother figures, in order to show that' the pivot J, ot the reflectingshutter ll, is provided with a spiral spring V, the lower end of whichis lirmly attached to the pivot J, and the upper end ot' which istirnily attached to the chamber l), as shown.

llO

The connection of the ends of thel spiral I pivot J, and the casing D,

respectively, may

lower end of said spring to said pivot J, and the upper end ofsaidlspring toisaid casing D. The reflecting shutter H, is normally heldclosed against the inner face of the: casing D, by the torsion of thespring V; the spring V, being held in torsion when its upper end issoldered or otherwise fastened to the bottom of the chamberl), and itsIlower end ,soldered or otherwise fastened to the l bottom of the pivotJ. In this manner the reflecting shutter H, is in its -normal conditionagainst the inner face vot' the casing l), and the functionalmechanismhereinbefore described is to open the reflecting shutter H,against the torsion of the spiral spring V, while the tendency of thespiral'spring V. is to always ke'ep the reflecting shutter cloed`Although l have in the last preceding paragraph limited the descriptionof the action o the shutter Il, the pivot J, and the spiral spring V, toone of the reflecting shutters H, it is to be lunderstood that when acentral lamp is constructed according to my invention that the oppositereflecting shutter G, is similarly operated.

The -head light shown at Figs. 6, and 7 being applicable in cases wheretwo head lights are used, requires but one casing C or D, in connectionwithwhich but one reflecting shutter G, or H, is used, so that when thereflecting shutters are operated primarily by or from the steering gearof the automobile then the single shutter in either the right or lefthand head light as the case may be, is opened or closed by the gearmodified in the position of the operative parts as shown at Fig. 8. lnall other respects the head light shown at Figs. 6, and 7, is identicalin operation and structure with the head light hereinbefore' describedand shown at Figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 9. l

It. will be obvious thatthe head lightl1ereinbefore described and shownupon the :annexed dra1 yings, besides being applicable for automobilesand other road or street vehicles, is applicable for other purposes,such for example for the head or side lights of steam, gasolcne, orelectrically operated launches, ships and other floating structures.

It is explained that the colored and obi scured portions of the platesof glass E, are preferably either red or green, such red'or green beingof about the same shades which are used in the larbfmrd and starboardlights ot' a sh ip at sea. Either the .central portion of each glass isunobscured, and the outer portion obscured, which isthe preferred ar-vrangement, or this order ma. be reversed. 'lhc head light casing A, hasfastened to its exterior as shown in the drawings, lugs lV, with acylindrical verticalbole therein, whereby the head lights are l'arrie'dupon the automobile, or other vehicle, in, connection with which myimproved head lights are, or may be used, there being vertical rods uponthe automobile or other vehicle, over and upon which the holes of thelugs lV, lit, thereby supporting the head light or lights. l claim as myinvention. y 1. In combination, a vehicle, steering' gear therefor, aheadlight.mounted on said vehicle,- said headlight having side openings,lateral casings projecting from said openings and having inclined outerends, glass plates mounted in said outer ends, said plates being in partclear and unobscured, and in part colored and obscured, said casingsbeing pro vided'. at their inner ends with reflecting shutters pivotedon vertical rods" having downwardly extending ends, means forautomatically operating said shutters from the steering gear, said meanscomprising crank arms on the lower ends of said rods, levers having atone end a pivoted and slotted connection with said crank arms, saidlevers being also connected with the steering gear. 3. ln combination, avehicle, steering gear therefor, two headlights mounted on said vehicle,each such headlight having an opening on its outer side, a lateralcasing projecting from said opening and having an inclined outer end, a.glass plate mounted in said outer end, said plates being in part clearand unobscured, and in part colored and obscured, said lateral casingsbeing each provided at itsinner end with a reflecting shutter pivoted on`a vertical-rod having a downwardly eX- tending end. means forautomatically operating said reflecting shutters from the steering gear,said means comprising a. crank arm on the lower end of said rod, a leverhaving at one end apivoted and slotted connection with said crank arm,said lever vbeing also connected with the steering gear.

ln testimony whereof, l have hereunto set my hand and seal at the cit.of Los A11 eles aforesaid, in the presence o two subscri ing witnesses.

ROYAL C. MCGLAY. [as] rit nesses:

S'r. Joux DAY, J. D. Coin'.

